CHICAGO-KENT COLLEGE OF LAWLABOR AND EMPLOYMENT LAW SOCIETYcurrent as of 3-26-09

Article INAME

The name of this organization is the “Chicago-Kent College of Law Labor and Employment Law Society” (“LELS”).

Article IISTATEMENT OF PURPOSE

The LELS is a community of students, faculty, staff, and alumni at the Chicago-Kent College of Law that is interested in labor and employment law. The LELS educates the Chicago-Kent community about labor and employment law, builds community by coordinating programs, events, socials, and other activities, and advocates for the academic and professional interests of labor and employment law students. LELS does not favor management, employees, or labor.

Article IIIMEMBERSHIP

Section 1 – Eligibility
Membership shall be open to all Chicago-Kent students (day, evening, full-time, and part-time), faculty, alumni, and staff. Individuals who are not affiliated with Chicago-Kent may attend programs and events, but may not be members.

Section 2 – Membership Status and the LELS On-Line Directory
To be a member, an individual must maintain a current entry on the LELS directory, which is maintained on the LELS website. If a member does not wish to have her or his information posted on the directory, the member may contact the Secretary to discuss alternatives to maintaining membership status.

Section 3 – Responsibilities and Privileges of Membership
Because the LELS relies on an involved and active membership, all members are encouraged to fully participate by attending executive board and general membership meetings, participating in programs, staffing events, contributing course outlines, etc.
Only members, as defined in section two above, will be given access to the LELS course outline bank and will be allowed to vote on LELS matters and elections

Section 4 – Membership Dues
Dues are generally not required. However, the executive board may vote to approve a fee to pay for special events and programs that SBA funding does not cover.

Article IVEXECUTIVE BOARD

Section 1—Requirements
Only current Chicago-Kent students may serve on the executive board, with the exception of the Faculty Advisor and Alumni Liaison positions, which must be filled by a member of the faculty and an alumna or alumnus respectively.

Section 2—Executive Board
The Executive Board shall consist of the officers and class representatives of the LELS. The officers include the President, Vice President of Internal Affairs, Vice President of External Affairs, Secretary, Treasurer, Technology Director, Alumni Liaison, and Faculty Advisor. There should be at least one class representative for each of the 1L sections, and one each the 2L, 3L, and 4L classes. When possible, there should be representation from both the day and evening divisions. There shall be no limit to the number of class representatives.

Section 3 – Officer PositionsA – President
The President shall call LELS meetings, coordinate the operation and direction of LELS including, but not limited to, programs (panels, speakers, socials, debates, etc.) and committee assignments. The President serves as a liaison between LELS and the Chicago-Kent Student Bar Association (“SBA”) and the administration. The President shall only cast a vote in an election, matter for discussion, or proposed amendment to the LELS constitution, in the event of a tie.

B – Vice-President for Internal Affairs (“VP-IA”)
This VP-IA shall call LELS meetings in the President’s absence. The VP-IA shall coordinate all recruitment activities, including the student organization fairs and office of admissions outreach programs. The VP-IA shall help recruit new members, encourage participation among all members, and assist the President in fulfilling his or her duties.

C – Vice-President for External Affairs (“VP-EA”)
The VP-EA shall assist the LELS with all external relations, most notably working with the Career Services Office and the Alumni Relations Office. The VP-EA shall be a member of the Alumni Relations Committee and work with the Alumni Liaison to develop and maintain student relations with the alumni. The VP-EA shall assist the President in fulfilling his or her duties.

D – Treasurer
The Treasurer shall maintain the financial accounts, set forth the budget in consultation with the President, and submit financial reports and reimbursement requests in accordance with the guidelines of the SBA and Administration. The Treasurer shall present financial reports at all executive board meetings. The Treasurer shall chair the fundraising committee.

E – Secretary
The Secretary shall compile, maintain, and distribute the minutes of meetings and the records of the LELS. The Secretary shall keep a current list of members and work with the Technology Director to ensure that the LELS membership directory on the website is current. The Secretary shall provide ‘back-up’ for the Technology Director in posting announcements on The Record and the Student Organizations Calendar. The Secretary shall work with the Alumni Liaison to maintain a list of alumni members.

F – Technology Director
The Technology Director shall ensure that the LELS remains current with technology by maintaining website information (posting agendas and minutes, updating the membership directory, updating the course outline bank, etc.), improving the website, coordinating on-line surveys, and by posting announcements on The Record and events on the Student Organizations Calendar, and taking other actions as necessary.

G – Faculty Advisor
The Faculty Advisor shall serve as a resource for the LELS President and executive board, facilitate the acquisition of speakers, and serve as a liaison between LELS and the Institute for Law and the Workplace, the Chicago-Kent faculty, and administration.

H – Alumni Liaison
The Alumni Liaison shall be responsible for ensuring that our alumni stay connected with the LELS. The position shall be filled by a Chicago-Kent alumnus or alumna who is employed in the field of labor and employment law. The liaison shall be appointed jointly by the President and the Faculty Advisor. The liaison shall chair the alumni relations committee.

I – New Permanent Officer Positions
The executive board may create a new permanent officer position with a simple majority (50% +1) vote of the board.

J – Ad Hoc Committee Chair Positions
Instead of centralizing all program and event planning under one position, events will be chaired by persons appointed by the President. The President may appoint other committee chairs as needed.

Section 4 – Class Representatives
i – There shall be no elections for class representative positions. All interested members may contact the President to serve as a representative.
ii – Class representatives shall be responsible for communicating news about LELS programs, events, and meetings to the student body.
iii – Class representatives are encouraged to help with the planning and implementation of LELS programs and events.

Section 5 – Officer Elections, Terms, Vacancies, and RemovalsA – Elections
i – To ensure a smooth leadership transition, the election of officers shall be staggered.
a) In mid-November or early-December, the President and Secretary shall be elected (and assume the position by the last day of classes for the fall semester). The two vice Presidents shall coordinate the elections.
b) In April, both Vice Presidents, the Treasurer, and Technology Director shall be elected (and assume the position by the last day of classes for the spring semester). The President shall coordinate the elections.
c) The Faculty Advisor does not have a defined term, but instead retains the position for as long as she or he wishes to serve.
d) The Alumni Liaison is appointed each January, for a one year term, by the newly elected President, in consultation with the Faculty Advisor.

ii – If a position is not contested, the applicant will automatically be seated in the position.

iii – If a position has two or more candidates, the candidate receiving a majority of those votes cast by LELS members shall be seated in the position. The executive board shall determine a fair election procedure that provides at least one week for members to state their interest in a position, followed by an election period that lasts at least one week. The President shall vote only in the event of a tie.

B – Dual Occupancy
An individual may occupy more than one office at one time, except no individual may serve as both President and Treasurer.

C – Length of Term
Each officer shall serve for a term of 2 consecutive semesters, which includes summer and academic breaks, as appropriate. The membership may reelect an officer to serve additional terms.

D – Vacancy
If an office or class representative position becomes vacant before the end of its regular term of office, the officers shall appoint a replacement for the remainder of the term. Prior to appointing a replacement, the officers shall solicit volunteers from the general membership.

E – Removal
An officer or class representative may be removed for good cause at any time by a 2/3 vote of the remaining executive board or by a simple majority (50% +1) of LELS members.

Article VCOMMITTEES

Section 1 – Election Committee
The Officers shall serve on this committee, which shall be chaired in the April elections by the President and in the November/December elections by the Vice Presidents.

Section 2 – Constitution Committee
The President shall chair this committee, which shall prepare and propose amendments to the Constitution.

Section 3 – Alumni Relations Committee
i – All Chicago-Kent alumni are eligible to serve on this committee.
ii – The committee shall serve as a resource to the executive board, and where possible, build connections between Chicago-Kent students and alumni. The committee may create a mentor program that matches Chicago-Kent labor and employment law alumni (and other professionals) with students and implement other programs as needed.
iii – The Alumni Liaison shall chair this committee, which shall recruit attorneys from the labor and employment legal community. Ideally, members of the committee will represent the diversity of labor and employment law by either working at (or having worked for) firms representing management, unions, government, and plaintiffs, as well as in-house counsel for government, unions, businesses, etc.
iv – The VP-EA shall serve as a member of the committee.
v – Other students may join the committee at the discretion of the Alumni Liaison and the VP-EA.

Section 1 – Executive Board Meetings
i – Executive board meetings are open to all LELS members. The executive board should meet as often as necessary to effectively plan and implement an active calendar of events and programs to meet the purpose of the LELS. Generally, this means that the executive board should meet at least three or four times each semester.
ii – The President shall call the meeting, but any officer may call a board meeting if necessary. The membership shall be notified of the meeting at least five (5) days in advance. The President, or officer calling the meeting, shall determine the agenda prior to the meeting and communicate the agenda to the membership at least 24 hours in advance.

Section 2 – General Membership Meetings
General membership meetings may be called by the executive board.

Section 3 – Meeting Minutes
The Secretary shall take minutes of all executive board and general membership meetings. The Secretary shall distribute the minutes to the membership within one week of the meeting. The Technology Director shall post the minutes on the LELS website. At the beginning of each executive board meeting, the executive board must review the minutes, make corrections as necessary, and approve the minutes.

Section 4 – Scheduling Meetings and Programs
When scheduling meetings and programs, the executive board should take into consideration the diverse schedules of students in the day and evening programs by varying the day and time at which meetings and programs are offered.

Section 5 – Summer Meetings
Those executive board members who are in Chicago during the summer are encouraged to meet at least once or twice over the summer to plan for the upcoming academic year. The President, or the VPIA or VPEA in the absence of the President, should plan this meeting.

Section 6 – Programs
The President shall appoint a chair of each program, who shall be responsible for coordinating all aspects of the program, including working with other officers (i.e., Treasurer for funding, Technology Director for web page and Record announcements, etc.).

Article VIIAMENDMENTS

Section 1 – Purpose
This Constitution is a dynamic document that reflects the sentiments of the current members, but may be amended whenever prudent.

Section 2 – Proposals
Any LELS member may submit a proposal to change this constitution during either the fall or spring semester. The proposed amendment must be seconded by an executive board member and will then be presented to the Constitution Committee for drafting of amendment language.

Section 3 – Ratification
Amendments shall be enacted by a simple majority (50% + 1) vote of those members who cast a vote. Voting on the Amendment shall occur at an executive board meeting, to which all members shall be invited to attend. Members shall be provided notice of the impending vote of at least one week. Any member who cannot attend the meeting, but wish to cast a vote, may vote by proxy. The member must contact the Secretary to submit their proxy vote. Votes on constitutional amendments may not take place during an academic break.

Article VIIIEXTERNAL AUTHORITIES

This organization shall be governed by this Constitution, the rules and regulations of the Chicago-Kent College of Law, and the laws of the City of Chicago, Cook County, the State of Illinois and the U.S. Federal Government.

Effective Date: The general membership approved this constitution at the March 26, 2009 membership meeting.